Advice for handling property damage

Things That Go Crash in the Night

The wind is howling, snow is drifting. It’s the middle of the night and suddenly there’s a loud crack and a thud.

Often, in the heavily treed Northeast, it’s a tree blown down onto — or, worse, through — a roof. Commonly, snow load can cause part of a roof to cave. Occasionally, a vehicle spins off an icy road and smacks into a structure. Faced with such disasters, what’s a homeowner to do?

“Make a call to your insurance carrier,” says Roz Lopez, personal lines manager at SEFCU’s insurance division, which covers property — both residential and commercial — as well as equine and other recreational uses. “They can offer help with prevention methods against further damage until someone can get there.”

Tarps are any property owner’s best friend in the event of damage. Covering open areas in a roof is a necessary first step. But if a tree is embedded in the roof, a tree remover is needed. Usually called lumberjacks or wood choppers, these are the people who arrive with dozens of chain saws, ropes, pulleys and motor driven cranks to get the tree off the building.

“Where’s it located?” is the first question Charlie Zanghi, owner of A+ Trees ’R Us, a Capital Region tree removal service, asks. “Location is everything. Give me the location, and I’ll give you a price for damage to the house and what the insurance covers.”

While some newer policies cover removal of storm-related debris, most homeowners carry insurance that pays for only the removal of the part of the tree that is actually on the house or sticking into it. The rest the homeowner pays out of pocket.

“I do two bills,” says Zanghi, who has been doing tree removal for 56 years, mostly on Long Island and the past eight years in Albany. “One for the insurance company, one for cleaning up debris and for taking down the tree left standing.”

While a tree falling on a house may seem like the most expensive part of any billing, the actual location of the remaining tree trunk can pose a problem. “It’s a question of access,” says Zanghi. “A tree in a backyard is more expensive than a tree in front. Then there’s the size of the tree. Bigger tree, bigger price. Then there’s the wood. Ninety percent of homeowners don’t want the wood. I give it away.”

Homeowners who want a tree removed right away, rather than wait for an insurance adjuster, are advised to take photos before the tree is touched. “We’ll advise you to wait until we can send an adjuster out,” says Lopez, whose company holds 10,000 policies on home, auto and commercial properties, “but if you can’t wait, for whatever reason, take photos and cover everything with a tarp to prevent further damage.”

Sometimes, a property owner needs to make decisions before anyone else arrives. A tree falling on a barn can end up costing life. Animals may need to be removed to a safer structure. Hay may be damaged.

Trees also can fall on fences, pools, arenas. Most of these structures are covered under any one of the three standard homeowner policies available in New York State.

If a vehicle is involved in the damage, most likely the motorist’s insurance will cover any damage caused by or to the vehicle, according to Lopez.

Most insurance companies gear up before a storm to add staff to handle the expected increase in claims calls, according to Lopez. SEFCU represents 25 insurance carriers. “In the last few years, companies are pretty prepared and someone is usually available.”

Like Zanghi, Lopez cautions that tree location is an important factor. “Sometimes we look at causes,” says Lopez. “Maintenance issues, like is that a tree that should have been taken down?”

Damage related to a fallen tree can include broken pipes, which are covered, but mudslides are not, according to Lopez. “There’s separate coverage for groundwater damage,” she says.

For property owners unsure of what their current policy covers or what standard policies in New York State can offer, information is available at the New York State Department of Financial Services, a new agency combining the former state Department of Insurance and Department of Banking created Oct. 3, 2011 under Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Go to dfs.ny.gov, click the consumers tab, and go down the page to insurance products.